Menu

Media and Technology Stats and Studies – January 11, 2013

The Joint Center blog is starting a weekly feature called Media and Technology Stats & Studies. In this feature, the Media and Technology Institute team will assemble short summaries of research studies that we think our readers will find interesting. For the most part, we’ll view these studies through the lens of how they impact people of color. Sometimes, we may share something in the media, technology, or telecom fields that we think is just too interesting not to pass on. We hope readers find this useful.

Stats & Studies – 01/11/13

Investments in Digital Health Technologies Rose 45 Percent in 2012

In its year-end funding report, San Francisco-based Rock Health showed health IT investments of $1.4 billion in 2012, up 11 percent over 2011. Health technologies like mobile health tools for doctors and patients, personal health tracking applications, and technology to improve hospital administration are of particular relevance for people of color who continue to suffer disproportionately from chronic illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, and lower respiratory illnesses. The Joint Center’s 2012 report on mobile health technology is available here.

Weill Cornell Medical College: Technical Support in the Use of Electronic Health Records May Improve Underserved Patient Care

A Weill Cornell Medical College study reported that primary care physicians in underserved areas in New York City who received technical assistance with electronic health records were more likely to improve their quality of care than physicians who did not receive such assistance.

The Consumer Electronics Association reports it expects spending on consumer gadgets to soar by 4% over 2012, to $1.1 trillion in 2013. This outlook was somewhat dampened by concerns about how the recent “fiscal cliff” tax changes, specifically the end of the tax holiday and increased taxes on the wealthy, will affect consumer spending. The report did not address how continued high unemployment among African-Americans and Latinos will affect their purchasing decisions, even though African-Americans and Latinos are among the most avid users of at least one type consumer device—smartphones. CES concluded most of the growth would occur in emerging markets. Apple also battled rumors earlier this week that it is developing a cheaper iPhone.

Nielsen Reports TV Still Leads as Number One Media Consumption Platform

Nielsen reported that only 16 percent of American homes have tablets and that Americans spend 6 days per month watching traditional television. Following traditional television viewing, viewing content via the Internet using computers was the distant second most popular platform with Americans spending 28 hours, 29 minutes consuming content online. Time-shifted TV came in third, with the average viewer spending 11 hours, 33 minutes using their DVRs. Previously, Nielsen reported that African-Americans spend more time watching television than any other racial group, at 7 hours, 12 minutes per day, compared to an average 5 hours, 11 minutes for TV viewers overall. Other reports have shown that African-American children spend more time with the television on in the background than other groups (5.5 hours per day, compared to 4 hours for the overall population). However, the American Academy of Pediatrics has found background TV viewing to be harmful to children’s development.

Other Reports:

Sixty percent of qualified homes in Kansas City are interested in Google’s IPTV + broadband service.